Quinoline- and Pyrimidine-based Allosteric Modulators of the Sarco/Endoplasmic Reticulum Calcium ATPase.

Small-molecule allosteric activators of the enzyme sarco/endoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase (SERCA) hold promise as novel experimental tools to manipulate intracellular calcium concentrations and as therapeutic agents to treat medical conditions associated with elevated cytosolic calcium levels. Here, we synthesized and characterized 20 analogs of the known allosteric SERCA activator CDN1163 and tested their ability to stimulate SERCA activity. The structures of the compounds varied in the alkyl group of the parent scaffold's ether moiety as well as in the composition of the nitrogenous aromatic ring system.

The molecular determinants of calcium ATPase inhibition by curcuminoids.

The natural product curcumin and some of its analogs are known inhibitors of the transmembrane enzyme sarco/endoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase (SERCA). Despite their widespread use, the curcuminoids' binding site in SERCA and their relevant interactions with the enzyme remain elusive. This lack of knowledge has prevented the development of curcuminoids into valuable experimental tools or into agents of therapeutic value.

The influence of lipid compounds on the content of fluorides in antlers and cranial bones of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.).

Introduction: Fluorine is a lipophilic element and for this reason lipids play a significant role in the accumulation and metabolism of fluorides in organs and bodily fluids. One of the places where interactions between fluorides and lipids can be observed are bones and antlers of deer. Even though the overall content of fluorides and lipid compounds in bones has repeatedly been analysed, we still know little about their interactions in antlers which are shed every year.

Surnames and dialects in France: population structure and cultural evolution.

To study the isonymy structure of France as related to local language variations, the surname distributions of 6.03 million telephone users registered for the year 2002 were analysed in the 21 conterminous regions, their 94 departments and in 809 towns of the Country. For regions and departments the differences among local dialects were quantified according to the dialecto-metrization of the Atlas Linguistique Français.